LIVONIA, Mich. - - The Madonna softball team used a pair of one-hitters from Jess Irwin and timely hitting to emerge from day one of the 2008 Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Softball Championship a perfect 2-0. MU took down fourth seed Michigan-Dearborn 8-0 in five innings to open the tourney and then won its winner's bracket game over Indiana Tech 4-0 at University Field. With the wins MU improves to 34-12-1 on the season.

MICHIGAN-DEARBORN
The Crusaders plated two runs in the bottom of the first as Christina Finch (Albion, Mich.) hit a two-run homer to right center, driving in Brittney Scero (Canton, Mich.) for a 2-0 Madonna lead.

Madonna added three more runs in the second as Tara LaMilza (St. Clair Shores, Mich.) hit a one-out double and moved to third on a wild pitch. Kelly Lesko (Trenton, Mich.) drove in LaMilza with a single back to the circle to make it 3-0 MU. Scero followed with a double of her own to score Lesko and make it 4-0. Cat Sidor (Livonia, Mich.) extended her hitting streak to 30 games with a double of her own to score Scero and make it 5-0.

After UMD put two runners on base with its lone hit of the game and a MU error in the top of the fourth, the Crusaders made it 7-0 with two more runs in the bottom of the inning.

Sidor drew a one-out walk and scored on a Tedi Johnston (New Boston, Mich.) double to right center. Johnston, after moving up on a ground out, scored on a Danielle Richardson (Flint, Mich.) single to center to make it 7-0.

Irwin (Monroe, Mich.) got the Wolves to go down in order in the top of the fifth, setting the table for MU to lock up the run-rule win. Lesko drew a one-out walk and moved to third on a Scero single to left that was misplayed by the UMD outfield. Sidor then hit a fly ball to center that was deep enough to score Lesko from third for the eighth and final MU run.

Finch, Johnston, Scero and Ashley Shay (Garden City, Mich.) each had two hits in the MU win with Finch and Sidor driving in a pair each. Irwin was stellar in the circle, allowing just two base runners and just. one hit for her 20th win of the season  Of the 16 UMD hitters to go to the plate, 11 of them were retired on strikes.

INDIANA TECH
The Crusaders drew the Warriors of Indiana Tech in the second round after the Warriors downed Aquinas in its opening round game. MU had two runners on in the bottom of the first but could not push a run across, keeping the game 0-0.

The Warriors recorded their only hit of the contest in the fifth as Jenn Anderson doubled to center, but Irwin stranded her there by wrapping a pair of strikeouts around a pop out to get out of trouble and set up a big inning for her side.

Shay led off with a single and was run for by Rachael Kethe (Lenox, Mich.) LaMilza dropped down a bunt single to put runners at first and second with no one out. Kathleen Smiley (Wixom, Mich.) laid down a sacrifice bunt to move both runners into scoring position. Lesko dropped down the fourth straight Crusader bunt, scoring Kethe and making it 1-0. Scero then laced a triple to the corner in right, scoring two to make it 3-0. Sidor - who was bidding for a 31-game hitting streak - grounded out to second, but drove in Scero to make it 4-0 after five complete.

Irwin got into a bit of a jam in the sixth, allowing two base runners but got some help from her friends as Richardson picked off Monique Crow who had wandered too far off of first to end the inning.

In the seventh, Irwin was lights out as she struck out Jessica Williams and Anderson to open the inning and got April Alexander to line out to Sidor to end the game and send MU into the WHAC title game for the second straight season.

Finch was the only Crusader to post multiple hits, while Scero drove in two with her triple. Sidor saw her school record 30-game hitting streak - a streak that stretched back to the March 29 game against Midway - end with an 0-for-2 game, driving in a run in the win. Irwin struck out 10 Warriors in earning her 21st win of the season.

The Crusaders will now await the winner of second seeded Aquinas and third seed Indiana Tech. AQ and Tech square off at Noon tomorrow and the winner meets MU at 2pm.